Chainlink ETF Eyes Imminent Debut —Will LINK Finally Break Its Slump?

Chainlink (LINK) is about to get its first-ever spot ETF as Grayscale’s GLNK begins trading on December 2 on NYSE Arca.

However, after recent altcoin ETFs failed to lift prices, investors are left asking whether LINK will break the trend or become the next casualty of weak market sentiment.

Grayscale Pushes Ahead With Third ETF Launch in Two Weeks

The rollout marks Grayscale’s third ETF deployment in under 14 days, following GDOG and GXRP, with the Zcash (ZEC) ETF also in the pipeline.

It also reinforces the firm’s strategy of expanding beyond Bitcoin and Ethereum, targeting altcoins with strong institutional narratives.

The ticker for the prospective financial instrument is GLINK, with the notice already in.

Grayscale’s GLINK ETF. Source: Eric Balchunas on X

However, the market backdrop is challenging as recent altcoin ETFs failed to life the prices of Solana and XRP.

Altcoin ETFs Are Not Rallying Prices—And Data Shows It

Despite initial excitement, recently launched altcoin ETFs have underperformed as market sentiment shifts to a risk-off stance.

• The SOL ETF, launched November 13, is down 18%.
• The XRP ETF, launched November 14, is down over 10%.

Solana and XRP Price Performances Following Their Respective ETF Launches. Source: TradingView

The broader altcoin liquidity has weakened alongside fading ETF-driven inflows. This raises the key investor question: Will GLNK trigger a meaningful LINK price rally, or follow the same pattern of post-launch selloffs?

Chainlink (LINK) Price Performance. Source: BeInCrypto

As of this writing, with only hours to the financial instrument’s debut, LINK was trading for $12.09, down by almost 1% in the last 24 hours.  

Whale Accumulation Reveals Deep Losses Ahead of ETF Day

Meanwhile, Onchain Lens identified a major LINK whale who spent months accumulating the asset.

“A whale has been gradually accumulating LINK from OKX and Binance. Over the past 6 months, the whale has accumulated 2.33 million LINK for $38.86 million, currently valued at $28.38 million, facing a loss of $10.5 million,” they wrote.

The whale’s address, tracked via Nansen, highlights a significant unrealized loss heading into ETF debut day. Heavy underwater positions can increase the risk of short-term selling into any ETF-driven liquidity spike.

Yet not all signals are bearish.

Data from CryptoQuant shows that LINK’s circulating supply on exchanges just dropped to its lowest level since 2020.

LINK Supply on Exchanges. Source: CryptoQuant

Analysts note that every time this chart exhibits this behavior, the price does not remain low for long.

Historically, declining exchange balances have foreshadowed major Chainlink rallies, as reduced supply often tightens available liquidity during periods of high demand. The timing, just hours before GLNK launches, is notable.

Tomorrow’s Chainlink ETF debut creates a rare crossroad:

• Bearish forces: weak altcoin ETF performance, negative market sentiment, large underwater whale positions.
• Bullish forces: shrinking exchange supply, sustained long-term accumulation, and an upcoming influx of traditional-market exposure via GLNK.

For investors, the critical window will be the first 72 hours of ETF trading, when flows, volume, and sentiment will reveal whether GLNK is a catalyst, or simply another ETF launch overshadowed by macro pressure.

Either way, Chainlink enters this week as one of the most-watched altcoins in the market.